The ride from the airport to the InterContinental took about 30 minutes without traffic. The hotel has a unique sandcastle-like exterior, which makes it stand out.

Hotel exterior

Reception was on the right side as soon as I walked in the door, and I was promptly assisted. Despite using a promotional night from Priority Club’s “Sweet Dilemma” promotion, I managed to snag a club suite.

Lobby

I was escorted to the room by a lovely Australian lady, who explained all the of restaurants in the hotel, the hours of the Club InterContinental, etc.

Elevators

The suite itself was plenty large. Upon entering was a large living room with a couch and chairs, along with a desk area. There was also a half bath right by the entrance.

Living room

Living room

Half bath

The bedroom was connected to the living room by double doors.

Bedroom

Bedroom

Bedroom

The bedroom led to the master bath, which featured a shower and tub.

Bathroom

Shower

Tub

The room boasted nice views of the pool and Arabian Gulf in the background.

View from the room

View from the room

View from the room

While as a Royal Ambassador you get complimentary beverages from the minibar, this is the first hotel I’ve stayed at that only offers Royal Ambassadors complimentary soft drinks from the minibar, apparently due to some local low (or something like that). In the living room was a bowl of fruit, though I never did receive the Royal Ambassador welcome gift (if they even have one)

Minibar

Fruit plate

On the whole the room was well appointed, though not especially modern.

While I was entitled to free internet as a Royal Ambassador, the first night the internet was incredibly slow to the point that I went to the lobby and used the wifi there. Fortunately the internet speed improved considerably the following day, though even then it was a stretch to call it “high speed” internet access.

Since I arrived late the first night, I wasn’t able to partake in the Club InterContinental offerings, though I had breakfast the following morning. The spread was excellent, with everything you would expect. There was also a menu, from which I ordered an omelet the first day and pancakes the second day.

Club InterContinental entrance

Club InterContinental

Breakfast spread

Breakfast spread

I found it pretty funny that the juice in the club had an “InterContinental Doha” label. It was surprisingly fresh, though, so it wasn’t just Sunny D repackaged.

Juice

Breakfast

Breakfast

Breakfast

Afternoon tea is also served in the club, which consists of finger sandwiches, strawberries with cream, and scones with jam and clotted cream.

Afternoon tea

The evening spread was available from 6PM to 8PM, and was slightly less impressive than the breakfast and afternoon tea spread. There were a couple of hot options, though the cold options were somewhat limited. The dessert spread was quite good, though.

Evening spread

Evening spread

Evening spread

I wasn’t blown away by the service in the club. While the ladies working there were attentive, they never smiled or seemed genuine in their service.

The hotel does have a nice pool and artificial beach, though I’m from Florida, so that wasn’t of much interest to me.

Pool

Pool

Beach

One of the very cool things about the hotel is that they have a shuttle service with a set time schedule that will drop you off at the airport, city center, Islamic Museum, or Souq. Not only did I save a few bucks thanks to the service, but it was actually much easier than trying to hail a cab and then dealing with the language barrier. I also ended up using the shuttle to the airport the last morning.

Overall my stay at the InterContinental was good. It was an amazing value given that I had used promotional nights, when the revenue rates were well over $200 per night.

Stay tuned for the next installment, as I show you all there isn’t is to do in Qatar.

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About luckyBen Schlappig (aka Lucky) is a travel consultant, blogger, and avid points collector.
He travels about 400,000 miles a year, primarily using miles and points to fund his first class experiences.
He chronicles his adventures, along with industry news, here at One Mile At A Time.

Hey, I’m Arab (though not a Gulf Arab), I don’t care what the UN calls it, I always refer to it as the Arabian Gulf 😉

With regards to the soft drinks/alcohol issue in your room…most places in Qatar and the UAE have to have a license to sell alcohol, so the majority of clubs, bars, and restaurants are located in hotels. My guess is, the hotel has a license to sell the alcohol but can’t give it away in rooms…if that makes any sense.

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Thanks for another informative trip report / being the canary in the coal mine 😉

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